Don Lemon on why it’s still important for famous people to publicly come out

CNN's Don Lemon ended the "OutFront" broadcast on Monday night by commenting about Robin Roberts' coming out, and why it's important for other famous people to publicly come out as well.

By Staff ReportsTuesday, December 31, 2013

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CNN’s Don Lemon ended the “OutFront” broadcast on Monday night by commenting about Robin Roberts’ coming out, and why it’s important for other famous people to publicly come out as well.

“Do people really need to do it anymore? The answer is yes,” says Lemon.

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Lemon, who came out publicly in 2011, spoke of his own struggles coming out to people close to him, and then coming out publicly years later, saying he was fearful at how the news would be received by viewers and others.

He said he was “afraid of people like Phil Robertson who claim to love everyone while simultaneously thinking that everyone’s love is unequal.”

Lemon said he hoped that for Roberts “empowerment will quickly replace fear,” and that as long as people continue to celebrate the rights of people like Robertson who speak out against homosexuality, then openly gay celebrities and newscasters such as himself, Roberts, Anderson Cooper, Rachel Maddow, and others “should be celebrated as well.”

“That’s why it’s still important to come out and say, very simply, ‘I’m gay,'” says Lemon.